The Duel Between The Cleveland Cavaliers and The Golden State Warriors Has Officially Commenced!

Stephen Curry’s Warriors and Lebron James Cavaliers are all suited and booted for the 2015 NBA Finals! As we prepare for lift-off on Thursday June 4, 2015 at 9:00 p.m. I’d like to take you through a B-ball recap in case you’ve forgot what a season these two teams had. 

Image Credit: http://sportsbook.pics

Take a look at all of the stats and predictions leading up to tomorrow’s game here. 

Lebron, directly coming from the Miami Heat came out of the gates supplying extreme pressure. Although this 6’5 250 beast is nothing less than unstoppable when it comes to his defense, will carry his team on his back and take it all the way home, or will players like Tristan Thompson continue to hold down the fort whenever his number is called. 

Check out some footage here of Lebron James All-Star Top 10.

As we exit out of King James hype, let’s look into Mr. Stephen Curry’s accomplishments. The most valuable player has led his team into winning a total of 67 games within the entire season. This is by far been one of the top 10 best seasons in NBA history! 

We all know Curry probably has one of the most accurate long distance shots in the League, but will this carry his team throughout the finals as swiftly as he moves through the court? 

Check out some highlights of Mr. Curry here. 

By the Warriors and Cavaliers February 26, 2015 game, the Cavaliers had reached their 11th straight home game win (longest streak since 2010.) 

While the Warriors haven't witnessed a final series since 1975-76, they definitely secured their spot this time around with 104 points against the Houston Rockets 90 points during game 5. 

With Lebron averaging in 27.3 points and Stephen Curry averaging in 25.9 points in the postseason of their careers, the only question left to answer is how will they deliver during the finals and who will win it all? 

Stay tuned for the kick-off of the final games!

-Alexis J. Robinson

@Alexisjanaiformayor 

NYCFC PRAYING FOR A SAVIOR?

The mood surrounding the New York City Football Club, Before Saturday’s Match against Real Salt Lake, was starting to look more promising. They were coming off a huge come from behind draw against the Chicago Fire, also were down a man. Entering Saturday the team you would think was going to come out strong. We were sadly disappointed. The team didn’t even show up, they were shutout 2-0. The game was never in doubt for Real.

The same questions arise after every loss that the Blue and White suffer. The Attack was stagnant, the Mid Field is just a barren waste land where the ball is lost, and the back line has more wholes then Swiss cheese.  Sadly we cannot address all of these. The team has tried internally. They have played with the lineup, they have moved guys out of position, and they even have tapped the local market in signing Old Bridge New Jersey Native R.J. Allen.  All have gone by the wayside as the team continues to struggle.

With July approaching quickly, this means the Transfer Market within the MLS starts to heat up. As all the leagues around Europe finish off their season the MLS is just getting to the middle of their schedule.  This also means players around the FIFA universe start to look for new teams and contracts.  We already know of major moves like Steven Gerrard leaving Liverpool to join the Galaxy or Frank Lampard ending his BPL career to join the NYCFC in the MLS. This is the one thing that NYCFC Fans have been clamoring for, since Lampard’s ETA has been a bit of a mystery. According to SI.com Lampard will make 6 million for 1.5 years of service.  

In most leagues outside of the MLS there is no cap, but just like most American sports there is one in MLS. Any team is allowed to sign three players over the cap; this is known as the David Beckham rule. As it stand right now the City has 2 designated players (Villa and Lampard). They will search for one more, many believed to be an aging legend from overseas.  Many have been linked to the Big Apple and the MLS but most rumors are just negotiating tactics older stars use in Europe.

From what I have gathered is that there are a few legit Rumors. First there is Didier Drogba, who turned down an offer of 10 million in 2012 to join the MLS. As reported on by The Telegraph in the UK, NYCFC has reportedly made an offer to the 37 year old Chelsea forward. He would reunite with his old teammate Lampard.  Drogba scored 4 times for eventual champions Chelsea.

Next, there is Italian futbol legend Andrea Pirlo. He is currently preparing for his June 6^th match against Barcelona to decide the Champions League. This hasn’t stop the Rumor mill from turning, as his name has popped up several times. He too has been linked to NYCFC and Lampard. According to David Amoyal of Italian transfer experts GianlucaDiMarzio.com, he says that "Pirlo is very intrigued by the possibility of playing in the shadow of the Statue of Liberty, he prefers moving to the United States over the option of playing in the Middle East. Sabri Lamouchi, the coach of Al-Jaishnin, had offered Pirlo a huge contract to play in Qatar a few weeks ago. Pirlo continues to have ongoing conversations with the United States as he prepares for the Champions League final in Berlin." This is very encouraging but we must take every rumor with a grain of salt.

Photo Credit: Getty Images

There is so much speculation and gossip right now. Here are a few more players I think are real possibilities, Ashley Cole of Italy’s Roma is a good place to start. The 34 year –old Fullback would definitely bolster a very lackluster back line. It was reported by David Amoyal as well that Cole has met with Roma’s Brass about a move to the MLS.  There have been speculation about other high tier players leaving for the MLS but I call shenanigans on all of them.

Before I make a prediction of who I believe our third DP will be I will leave you with two Dark horse picks that haven’t had much if any ties to the Blue and White. Kevin-Prince Boateng was recently released by FC Schalke 04. He obviously has a lot left in his legs seeing as he is only 28. He has been linked the a return to Milan but also has had rumors to the RBNY (shot down that pretty quickly). This again is just my opinion but If NYC (who is owned by the Yankees and Manchester City) wanted to make an epic splash they could go after him. The other which may have more legs to the rumor then the last is Zlatan Ibrahimovic. He recently applied for a work visa, this causing the MLS world to get giddy that the Superstar may make his way state side. He would be by far the Best Talent to make his way to Major League Soccer. I could dream can’t I?  

Photo Credit: cctv-africa.com

When it’s all said and done I believe that Drogba will be the final move made this summer for the Boys in Blue. He is old and good friends of Lampard. He wants to be able to perform and if he played in America he would instantly be a top twenty player in the League. With that being said it will be a fun July. 

GALLO 

NYCFC New York’s Newest Team, May Take MLS by Storm this Summer. Just Ask the Chicago Fire

New York City Football Club, the newest professional sports team in New York. They are owned by two of the richest franchises in sports world wide, Manchester City of England’s Premier league and The New York Yankees. They play their matches in the Bronx at, you guessed it, Yankee Stadium. 

They started the season with a bang by winning their first home game at Yankee Stadium. Soccer legend and current superstar of the Blue and White David Villa scored the first goal ever for the club. Besides that they haven’t won any other games. Their current record is 1-6-4. They are currently stuck in an eight-game winless streak. They have given away a lot of hard fought games late.

Photo Credit : (Adam Hunger/USA Today Sports)

After losing the first Hudson River Rivalry to their rivals in New Jersey the Red Bulls, they were set to play the Chicago Fire on Friday. The crowd was loud and the match started. No longer than 14 minutes later Razvan Cocis scored off a free kick to make it 1-0. In the 27th minute, rookie RJ Allen received a red card for his slide tackle in the box. The penalty was made and NYCFC now was down to only ten men and were trailing 2-0. Even the always energetic supporter section Third Rail was dumbfounded for a few minutes. The outlook was very bleak, they were dead in the water, OR WERE THEY?

As the first half went on, it looked a little like NYC was just going through the motions waiting for the ref to blow the whistle to end the half. Only one person looked to have life. Spain’s David Villa, the captain, was playing hard and trying to get his team going. You could see how hard he wanted to fight back. Finally right as the half was winding down, Villa had a run with some great dribbling and let a shot rip from 25 yards out. Off the rebound Ballouchy, the teams leader in goals, put the shot in the back of the net after he was clearly fouled. Walking off the field Villa received a yellow for not letting this one go. This may have been the turning point not only of the game but the year.

The second half started and NYCFC looked like a totally different team. They were all alive and attacking. Mix Diskerud who had struggled to that point looked like a maniac in the second half, playing box to box. Villa kept his hard play going and the team was definitely feeding off of it. The team slowed down a bit, looking tired. NYC’s manager Jason Kreis decided to put in super Rookie Khiry Shelton. The game surged on both team trading blows. In the 92^nd minute NYCFC finally broke through to tie the game. Villa kept a ball alive and managed to get the ball through to Shelton who put it away and Pandemonium had taken over Yankee stadium. The game would end shortly after.

Yes it was a draw and yes it doesn’t snap the winless streak but this was a huge game. You are probably asking yourself, “Why is a draw a big deal?” Well this team had play hard in almost every game and the results didn’t show. They were starved for some excitement. They were a man down and dominated. This team now should have a much different outlook on the season. With a crazy loyal fan base and the Third Raill keeping the crowd involved throughout the games it will be hard to win at Yankee stadium. The team has Frank Lampard, England Legend, coming over in July and one of their Designated Player spots open (one of the MLS stupid cap restriction rules that could be explained here: http://pressbox.mlssoccer.com/content/roster-rules-and-regulations ) 

PHOTO CREDIT: NYCFC.COM

The season is still young and the US Open Cup has yet to begin, this team has room to improve and grow. With a young team and a Roster that will improve we will see a new team and hopefully a playoff run in their future. 

Mets Make April Very Confusing for Their Fans

As every season comes and goes we all know the optimism that Opening day brings. This year, In particular, has a different excitement. The Mets started off the season in Washington and Atlanta, finishing with a record of 3-3. Not bad but not good. During this time period the Mets lost closer Jenry Mejia to an 80 game suspension. Although most years this would make me nervous this year it did not because Jeurys Familia. He stepped in and promptly made himself comfortable. He would only give up 2 runs in 13 games this season. 

Image Credit: Getty Images

The Metropolitans then traveled back to Queens for their home opener. The buzz at the stadium was one that I haven’t felt since I attended opening day back in 2007. What happened next was, to Mets fans at least, a miracle. The team would go to win their next ten ballgames. Their streak was at 11. They were pitching amazing. Colon in his first 4 starts won all of them. He looked like a blast from his past. He also didn’t look like a 40 year old over weigh pitcher. De Grom although not at his sharpest still managed to get the win in his first two starts (opening day and home opener). Last but not least Matt “Dark Knight” Harvey made his return to the mound for the amazins’. He looked as if he never missed a step. He is 5-0 with a 2.41 era in as many starts. The other great thing about this is that we lost three key cogs in Wright, D’Arnaud, and Blevins. All of whom were off to flaming hot starts. As Mets fans you felt as if the team would never lose again. Obviously we were wrong.

Image Credit: Rob Foldy/Getty Images​

The stage was set for this year’s first edition of the Subway Series. The Mets and Yankees both off to good starts were heading for a crash course in the Bronx. The first night De Grom would get lit up in front of a pro-Mets crowd. Harvey would shut down the Bombers the next game. The last game, a ESPN Sunday Night prime time game, would be eventful to say the least but the Mets would eventually fall due to errors by their inept middle infielders (Murphy and Flores). Including that series the Mets would lose 7 of the next 10. Mostly impart to a stagnant offense and terrible infield defense by, you guess it, the middle infielders.

As a Mets fan if I told you in March that we would be 16-10 and 3.5 games in first you’d take it. Although I feel as if we will win a lot of ball games I still feel as if we have major question marks. To start the combination of Murphy and Flores up the middle has been terrible. They have cost us to many games already this season. Flores has shown pop at the plate but not enough to mask his defense. Murphy has been in a slump since day one and his defense isn’t helping.

Next up, The Mets offense at times has shown life. We can get on base and we don’t strike out at a high rate. Duda and Lagares have looked great at the plate. This however has not translated into runs. This past weekend we lost back to back ballgames 1-0. This can’t happen, we have to much pitching to just waste superb starts. 

All in all I still feel confident that this team is for real. It’s just the Met fan in me that makes me worry after ever loss that we may lose ten in a row. If the Rotation and Bullpen hold up and the lineup and young guns can produce life in the offense we could be looking at a 90 win team. For now Mets Fans we shall sit and wait. 

Gallo 

Twitter: @PicoDe_Gallo

Alex Rodriguez Hits 660th Home Run to Tie Willie Mays

In the eighth inning of Friday night's game at Fenway Park, Alex Rodriguez hit a pinch-hit solo home run to give the Yankees a 3-2 lead. It was also his 660th career home run, tying Willie Mays for fourth place on the all-time list. (Watch it here: http://m.mlb.com/video/topic/6479266/v97083583) 

The crowd of 35,444 went silent when his pinch-hit homer -- the first of his career -- off reliever Junichi Tazawa on a 3-0 pitch, went into the seats high atop the Green Monster. The Yankees won 3-2 and his homer broke the 2-2 tie in the eighth inning.

He rounded the bases, touched home plate, and when he came to the bench, was greeted by all of his teammates, led by Yankee manager Joe Girardi.

The fan did not throw the ball back and I don't blame him one bit. Red Sox fan or not, that's a mighty valuable baseball.

The historic home run was never mentioned on the public address system, or on the scoreboard, and the announcement in the press box didn't occur until several minutes later.

"Willie Mays has always been a hero to me," Rodriguez told MLB Network after the game. "A year ago today, I never would've imagined even playing baseball. But a day like today, I think of my mother, my daughters, the people at the Boys and Girls Club where I learned to play baseball."

A-Rod came into the season with 654 career home runs after sitting out the 2014 season due to his Biogenesis related suspension. Needless to say, the validity of those 660 homers is in question.

The home run triggered a $6 million marketing bonus in A-Rod's contract, a bonus the Yankees are prepared to fight. They plan to claim Rodriguez's PED ties have rendered the milestone unmarketable.

"It was very emotional for me," said Rodriguez. "The last few years have been rough. To see their reaction...it was pretty emotional."

A-Rod is now tied with Mays and trails only Babe Ruth (714), Hank Aaron (755) and Barry Bonds (762) on the all-time home run list.

Christine O'Connor

@christineeeeO

Masahiro Tanaka Heads to the Disabled List

The Yankees opened the 2015 season with many uncertainties along with a roster full of expensive, aging and increasingly injury prone players loaded with talent but shrouded in skepticism about their ability to contend in the American League East.

Image Credit: Getty Images

While things were going relatively well  for the Yankees, they faced a major loss Tuesday night during the game against the Rays when news broke that Masahiro Tanaka was heading to the 15 day disabled list with tenderness in his right wrist on Tuesday, and after an MRI revealed a forearm strain in his throwing arm — an ailment frequently associated with ligament injuries. This is the second time the 26-year-old superstar landed on the disabled list for in his young big-league career. He will be shut down from throwing for 7-10 days, and Yankees GM Brian Cashman told reporters that the club hopes Tanaka will return to the mound in a month.

When asked if Tanaka’s latest injury could be related to the UCL issue that sidelined the pitcher last season, manager Joe Girardi said: “I can’t tell you that. I don’t know. I could be, it may not be. Something came up from his bullpen, and who knows? The thing is, we’ve got to deal with it, and we will.”

But Tanaka’s injury serves as a gloomy reminder of the Yanks’ continuous struggle to keep a healthy team as they employ the Majors’ oldest offense and a starting rotation that also features CC Sabathia, who missed most of 2014 with a knee injury, and Michael Pineda, who has made only 17 big-league starts since 2011.

It’s enough to keep Yankees manager Joe Girardi up at night, and with good reason. However, these Yankees have shown early on that they have the makeup to contend for a playoff place, even without Tanaka.

Meanwhile, their offense, one littered with question marks in March has re-emerged in April. Obviously Alex Rodriguez has been the catalyst, but Mark Teixiera is also slugging like his old self, while Brian McCann and Jacoby Ellsbury are Showing signs of bouncing back from bad first seasons in the Bronx. It’s early, but over the past two weeks at least, the Yankees have shown they can flat out hit - even Chris Young, who was laughed out of Queens last season, has an OPS flirting with 1.000 off of the bench.

Michael Pineda, who now becomes the Yankees’ ace by default, pitched 5²/₃ innings to get the eventual no-decision against the offensively underwhelming Rays. He threw 93 pitches, which prompted the somewhat early exit. Chase Whitley, will likely remain in the rotation until Tanaka comes back. 

So while Tanaka obviously represents a major loss, thanks to the way their offense has resurfaced, and the emergence of a sub-2.00 ERA bullpen, there’s really no reason why New York can’t still win the AL East.

Christine O'Connor

@christineeeeO

Yordano Ventura Needs to Calm Down for the Sake of the Royals

The Kansas City Royals have brawled their way to the top of the American League Central. Yordano Ventura was at the center of last week’s scuffle with the Athletics – hitting Brett Lawrie with a pitch before reliever Kelvin Herrera came on to throw behind Lawrie. Herrera then pointed to his head after being ejected, a gesture widely taken as a threat. Prior to that, Ventura instigated a shouting match with Angels star Mike Trout. And Thursday, he was ejected again for yelling at Adam Eaton and inciting a brawl with the White Sox – a move that ended up with six players suspended, including Ventura for seven games, and another fined.

 Image Credit: Jon Durr/Getty Images

Ventura had already set the tone by drilling Chicago slugger Jose Abreu, a move for which White Sox ace Chris Sale retaliated by hitting Kansas City’s Mike Moustakas. Among the reactions across baseball, a tweet from Dodgers pitcher Brett Anderson: “Dial it down Yordano Ventura. … dial it down, several notches.”

Image Credit: ANDREW A. NELLES AP PHOTO

The consequences were ugly. Lorenzo Cain sparred with Jeff Samardzija, his opening day antagonist. Chris Sale was furious, and later visited the Royals clubhouse in search of a fight. Volquez took a wild swing at Samardzija and received a five-game suspension. Cain was suspended for two games, as was reliever Kelvin Herrera. Both Sale and Samardzija received five-game bans. All involved parties will appeal the decision.

Ventura sounded apologetic after the game. He said it hurt him to see his teammates fighting the opposition after he failed to keep his cool. Ventura appeared aware of his reputation within the game, one debated endlessly these past few days on television, as a young pitcher unable to control his emotions.

The Royals cherish Ventura’s talent, and they lavished him with a five-year, $23 million contract before this season started. They raved about his maturity and emotional stability. Yet the first month of 2015 has called both qualities into question.

In the wake of these incidents, team officials have rallied around him while still insisting his behavior must change. Manager Ned Yost advised Ventura that opposing clubs would pinpoint his emotions to vex him. Teammates like Volquez, Jeremy Guthrie and Chris Young counseled Ventura that his talent is enough to trump any challengers.

In the wake of these incidents, team officials have rallied around him while still insisting his behavior must change. Manager Ned Yost advised Ventura that opposing clubs would pinpoint his emotions to vex him. Teammates like Volquez, Jeremy Guthrie and Chris Young counseled Ventura that his talent is enough to trump any challengers.

“Really, at the end of the day, he doesn’t deal with high-emotional situations very well,” Guthrie said. “They take him to a place that others sometimes don’t get to. It’s on both ends. It takes him to an elite performance level. But it also takes him to an emotional level that can be misunderstood and, at times, inappropriate.”

Yost speculated that opposing clubs would now utilize these tactics to hound Ventura during games. On Thursday, members of the Royals mentioned how Samardzija chirped at Ventura from the opposing dugout. Ventura did not have to deal with this treatment as often in 2014, when he was a rookie pitching third in a rotation that included James Shields.

If Yordano Ventura was pitching in the National League, this probably would've never happened. He wouldn't be nearly as reckless and confrontational as he is pitching in the American League. The reason being is that he would have to come up to bat face the opposing pitcher. In the American League, his teammates are the ones that face the retaliation. His teammates could get injured after getting beaned by the opposing pitcher or during a brawl and consequently missing playing time. 

After the major brawl against the White Sox, he and his teammates Lorenzo Cain, Kelvin Herrera, and Edinson Volquez have faced suspension. This greatly hurts the Royals because they have lost a great outfielder and three great pitchers for 5 to 7 games. This could deflate a team that has been doing very well this season. 

It is one thing to be a team that plays with intensity and heart, but the Royals need to gain control of their emotions or else they are going to be in for a long season.

Christine O'Connor

@christineeeeO

Subway Series Over: Yankees and Mets Both in First Place

New York City could enjoy the fact that baseball is still king in the city, that it remains a dominant presence in our lives and in our culture, even on a rich, full weekend, even on a night when the Rangers lit up Manhattan, on a weekend when we may say good-bye to the Nassau Coliseum, when the Nets try to generate a little life in Brooklyn.

Image Credit: esbnyc.com

Yankees manager Joe Girardi said: “Its good for the city, good for baseball. I’m sure the atmosphere will be really good the next few days, because of the way we’re [both] playing. Hockey is big in this city, basketball is big in this city. But we have two teams in first place and so we have a lot of people who are very excited about that.”

And here, the people care, they REALLY care. All you had to do was walk around the Stadium yesterday, listen to the buzz, listen to the passion, feel the energy. Baseball. In April. After 17 games.

Image Credit: Uli Seit for The New York Times

“You could sense the energy and the excitement from the beginning,” Mark Teixeira said. “And then to play the kind of game we played, that made it even better.”

Image Credit: DARREN MEENAN/SPECIAL TO THE RECORD

Curtis Granderson opened the game with a leadoff home run off Nathan Eovaldi, taking advantage of the short right field porch at Yankee Stadium as he has so many times before.  Following a single by Juan Lagares, Eovaldi got some help from New York Yankees centerfielder Chris Young, who took extra bases away from Lucas Duda.

Chase Headley also helped limit the damage taking a hit away from Michael Cuddyer.  With two outs and Lagares on second, Eovaldi, who struggled with his command early, allowed a line drive double to Daniel Murphy, scoring Lagares and extending the Mets lead to 2-0.  Following a visit from pitching coach Larry Rothschild, Eovaldi rebounded to get Eric Campbell to ground out to Headley, ending the inning.

After quickly retiring Brett Gardner and Young, New York Mets starter Jonathon Niese allowed a home run to Alex Rodriguez, the 659th of his career, cutting the lead to 2-1, and leaving him one shy of Willie Mays.  Mark Teixeira reached on an error by Mets third baseman Campbell, but was left stranded as Niese struck out Carlos Beltran looking.

Eovaldi recovered in the top of the second inning, retiring Wilmer Flores on a fly out to right field, and striking out Danny Muno and Kevin Plawecki.  After a lead off ground out by Headley, John Ryan Murphy ripped a double down the third base line, past a diving Campbell.

After Stephen Drew struck out looking, Gregorio Petit drove Murphy home with an RBI double over a leaping Campbell, tying the score at 2-2.  Gardner picked up the Yankees third double of the inning, past a diving Duda, giving the Yankees their first lead at 3-2.

Gardner was driven home on a slow shift beating single by Young to where the second baseman should have been, extending the lead to 4-2.  In his first chance to catch Mays, Rodriguez doubled to left field, and Young scored on a horrible throw by Cuddyer, giving the Yankees a 5-2 lead, but Rodriguez was thrown out at third base ending the Yankees threat.

Eovaldi struck out Granderson and Lagares to start the third, and looked to have settled down, but Duda singled and was driven home on an RBI double by Cuddyer, who advanced to third on a throwing error by Drew.  Murphy picked up his second RBI double of the game, cutting the lead to 5-4.  After another visit from Rothschild, Eovaldi got Campbell to ground out, limiting the damage to two runs. Following a 1-2-3 bottom half of the third, which saw Niese make a great play on a liner from Teixeira, Eovaldi recovered to once again set Flores, Muno, and Plawecki down in order, picking up his fifth strikeout.  Leading off the fourth, John Ryan Murphy looked to once again start a Yankees rally, picking up an infield single.  Drew put an end to those thoughts by grounding into a double play, and after a Petit fly out the inning was over.

Eovaldi struck out Granderson, picking up his sixth strikeout of the night.  Lagares hit a slow chopper to Headley, which the Yankees third baseman barehanded and almost made a great play on, but instead threw it short of Teixeira picking up an error, which allowed Lagares to reach second base.

With left-handed hitting Duda coming up, Yankees manager Joe Girardi went to southpaw Chasen Shreve, and Eovaldi’s night was over after 4 1/3 innings.  He allowed four runs, all earned, on seven hits, finishing with six strikeouts and no walks.

Shreve hit Duda in the back with a slider on his first pitch, putting the go-ahead run on base.  He recovered to get Cuddyer to hit into an inning ending double play.

Gardner led off the bottom of the fifth with a chopper to shortstop Flores, in which he was called out.  Girardi challenged the play, and the call was overturned, giving Gardner an infield single.  Young reached on a fielder choice’ but Mets second baseman Murphy committed an error, allowing Gardner to go to third, giving the Yankees runners on the corners.

Rodriguez hit into an RBI fielder choice’ which should have been a double play, but shortstop Flores threw the ball into the stands, allowing Rodriguez to go to second base, and giving the Yankees a 6-4 lead.  After a walk to Teixeira, Beltran hit into an inning ending double play, continuing his season long struggles.

Following a leadoff walk to Daniel Murphy, Shreve was replaced by Chris Martin.  Campbell grounded to Drew, who flipped the ball with his glove, and was saved of an error on a heads up play from Petit, who tagged Murphy causing a force out.  On a one out fly ball to Beltran, Campbell made a mental blunder, rounding the bases thinking there were two outs, and was thrown out at first base, ending the inning.

Erik Goeddel replaced Niese to start the sixth.  Niese went five innings, allowing six runs (four earned), on eight hits.  He struck out three (Beltran twice), and walked one.  Headley greeted Goeddel with a leadoff double, and John Ryan Murphy grounded out to third, failing to advance Headley.  Goeddel struck out Drew and Petit to end the inning, stranding Headley at second.

Martin returned for the seventh, retiring Muno and Plawecki.  Girardi then brought on southpaw Justin Wilson to face Granderson, and the move worked as Granderson popped out to third to end the inning.  Following a fly out by Gardner to start the bottom half of the inning, Goeddel struck out Young for the second out.  Rodriguez then lined out to right field for the third out of the inning.

As has been the case all season, Dellin Betances was brought in for the eighth inning and looked sharp, striking out Lagares, Duda, and Cuddyer, though Cuddyer reached on a wild pitch.  Betances recovered to get Murphy to ground out to second base.  He continued his dominance of the Mets, who are now a combined 0-9 with 8 K’s against Betances in his short career.

Alex Torres came on for the Mets in the bottom of the eighth, quickly retiring Teixeira, Beltran, and Headley in order, sending the game to the ninth inning with the Yankees ahead 6-4.  Unofficial closer Andrew Miller entered for the Yankees and after retiring Campbell, hit Flores in the ankle with a fastball.

John Mayberry Jr. came on to pinch hit for Muno with Flores on first with one out.  Miller struck out Mayberry, leaving the Mets down to their final out.  Plawecki then grounded out to shortstop, giving the Yankees the 6-4 victory.

Shreve picked up the victory, the first of his career, while Niese took the loss.  Miller picked up his seventh save in as many chances, and Martin, Wilson, and Betances all received holds.

The Mets and Yankees took their battle from the field to Twitter.

It all started when the Mets mentioned the Yankees in a play-by-play tweet, referring to them as "NY (AL)." Makes sense. The Yankees are in New York and the American League, but they weren't having it. To the pinstripe crew it was a sly way of talking about them without using the team name.

The crosstown rivals meet again at Citi Field in September.

Image Credit: twitter.com/Yankees

While October is forever away, what is at hand is the Yankees (11-8) are tied for first place in the AL East with the Rays, who are in The Bronx for three games starting Monday night. Also in the present is Alex Rodriguez being one homer away from tying Willie Mays for fourth place on the all-time list after homering off the top of the right-center field fence in the first inning Sunday.

Image Credit: deadspin.com

Christine O'Connor

Opening Weekend of the NBA Playoffs

What an exciting weekend of basketball! Some stars had their shine while others were lack-luster, but it shaped up to be a very exciting weekend to watch in the NBA. 

The Warriors built a big lead early and did just enough to hang on to it in Saturday’s 106-99 victory in Game 1 of the first round series with the Pelicans.

A capacity crowd decked out in gold T-shirts from Kaiser Permanente had plenty to cheer about early, as the Dubs led by as many as 15 in the first quarter. They padded that margin to 25 in the third quarter, and they wound up needing every inch of that advantage.

The Pelicans slowed the game down in the fourth quarter, and the Warriors left a lot of points at the free throw line to allow New Orleans back in the game. The Pelicans chipped away at their deficit and cut it to as few as four with 8.4 seconds left in the game, but free throws from Stephen Curry and Harrison Barnes put it away for the Warriors.

Curry got it started when he banked home a runner for the team’s first points of the game. That shot ignited a 14-1 run early in the game and the Dubs went on to dominate the entire first period. Curry had 11 of his 34 points in the opening quarter, and the Warriors yielded just 13 points in the frame, setting a franchise record for fewest points allowed in the first quarter of a postseason game.

New Orleans responded in the second quarter with an 8-0 run to open the period, but the Warriors would soon go on another game-defining run. Klay Thompson scored the first eight points of the quarter for the Warriors and the Dubs closed the half on a 15-2 run. Andrew Bogut was all over the court in the first half, impacting both ends of the floor on his way to a 12-point, 14-rebound and 5-assist performance.

Image Credit: Justin Ford-USA TODAY Sports

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Memphis never trailed in an easy 100-86 victory vs. Portland on Sunday in Game 1 of their NBA Playoff series on Sunday. Here's what you need to know about the Grizzlies' rout of the Trail Blazers.

LaMarcus Aldridge and Chris Kaman drove the Blazers to 24 points in the second quarter...a veritable treasure trove compared to their first-quarter drought. But Jeff Green and Mike Conley spurred their team to 33. Memphis scored over 1/3 of their regular-season average in just 12 minutes of play They figured that if Aldridge wouldn't yield to Randolph, they'd just try Damian Lillard and friends. It worked. Portland trailed 58-39 at the half.

Throughout the season the third period has been LaMarcus Aldridge time. Up or down at intermission, Portland sets the tone for the second half by feeding their superstar. Aldridge obliged them with 11 points in the third tonight but nothing came easy. Every possession was hard-fought.

Almost everything that could go wrong for the Blazers, did. Portland shot 34% from the field, 31% from the arc. Memphis outscored them 52-38 in the paint, 15-6 on the break. The Grizzlies committed only 8 turnovers. Portland ended up -5 at the foul line. The only thing Portland did well was double up the opponent in offensive rebounds, 16-8. But missing 63 shots will do that to a team.

​Image Credit: sportsnet.ca

Blake Griffin accelerated through the paint and threw down a vicious dunk right on Aron Baynes' head in the third quarter. A few minutes later, Griffin did it again to the same poor San Antonio center.

After three years of early-round failures, the Los Angeles Clippers are hungry for their first major taste of postseason success. As Griffin proved, they'll jump all over the defending champion Spurs as many times as necessary to advance.

Chris Paul scored 32 points, Griffin added 26 points and 12 rebounds, and the Clippers surged in the second half for a 107-92 victory Sunday night in their first-round series opener.

Jamal Crawford added 17 points as the Clippers stayed comfortably ahead down the stretch, meeting the defending champs' challenge to start off a difficult postseason-opening matchup for two powerful teams.

Image Credit: Getty Images

The Rockets got the series opener when they surged in the fourth quarter, taking advantage of the defense the Mavericks typically use on Harden to get open shots around him. Harden had 24 points, scoring 15 from the line. But he also moved the ball, not only collecting 11 assists, but often triggering the ball movement that provided just enough scoring down the stretch to make up for the buckets the Mavericks were getting at the rim when Howard was out.

“They were putting two on the ball,” Rockets coach Kevin McHale said. “We got it to the middle, got it to the weak side. Brew made a couple big shots. Trev (Ariza) made a big 3 with the clock running down. Against the two on the ball, you just have to move it. I think we did a pretty good job of that.

“James is a handful. He demands a lot of attention out there. When they’re doing that and he gets off the ball and moves it, it helps our offense.”

The Rockets got many of those open shots from their shooters with the Dallas championship rings. Jason Terry keyed the Rockets’ flying start to a 15-point first-quarter lead. Brewer was essential to their finish, scoring 13 of his 15 points in the fourth quarter when he made three 3-pointers.

One of the biggest questions entering the first-round series between the Milwaukee Bucks and the Chicago Bulls was this: What kind of Derrick Rose will we see? The aggressive, attacking Rose, circa 2010 MVP, or the guy who so often defaulted to 3-point shots after multiple knee injuries? If Game 1 was any indication, Rose's response was bad news for the Bucks.

Derrick Rose's first playoff game since 2012 went about as well as the Bulls could have hoped for, as he put up 23 points and added seven assists. Rose outplayed his counterpart in Michael Carter-Williams by a long shot.

The Bucks never could quite recover against an impressive and efficient Bulls effort, 30 assists on 38 field goals, a 52-41 rebounding edge and 12 of 32 threes. The Bulls did commit 19 turnovers that led to 25 Bucks points, which is the Bucks’ primary offense. But the Bulls had Pau Gasol, Joakim Noah and Taj Gibson all with double figure rebounds, Gibson seven on the offensive boards, and the signs once again after three years of pain and heartache that perhaps they can begin to plot and plan and dream again.

Image Credit: Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE/Getty Images

It was an encouraging performance for the Nets, but they still fell to the Hawks 99-92.

"As I told the team after the game, if you don't believe you can play in this series, you should believe it now. We played hard. I had no fault with the effort of our guys. We just have to be smarter and execute better."

The Nets, who were able to use their size to their advantage, finally began to settle in at the start of the third quarter. They started getting stops on defense and gaining confidence on offense. They were within striking distance in crunch-time, but Kyle Korver (21 points, 5-for-11 3-point range) or Jeff Teague (17 points, 6-for-12 shooting) always had an answer.

Overall, Brooklyn shot 5-for-20 from beyond the arc, went just 15-for-22 at the free-throw line and committed 17 turnovers, which led to 24 Atlanta points.

That the Hawks shot just 43 percent from the field, went 10-for-30 from 3-point territory, gave up 12 offensive rebounds and 54 points in the paint and still won speaks to their resolve. Paul Millsap (six points, 2-for-11 shooting) looked rusty in his return from injury, Al Horford (10 points, 10 rebounds) tweaked his finger yet it didn't matter. DeMarre Carroll (17 points) was his usual solid self, while speedy backup Dennis Schroder (13 points) also made his impact felt off the bench.

Atlanta shot 46.6 percent from the field in the regular season and 38 percent from 3-point range. It stands to reason that the Hawks will hit those numbers more often times than not for the rest of the series.

Image Credit: Mark Duncan/ Associate Press

The Cleveland Cavaliers passed their first playoff test Sunday, knocking off the Boston Celtics 113-100 in front of a sold-out Quicken Loans Arena crowd.

While the final score left no doubt about which team was superior, much of the game did. The Cavaliers trailed by four points at the end of the first quarter, appearing rusty after playing just one starterless game in the previous four days.

Kyrie Irving roared into the postseason, leading all scorers with 30 points on 11-of-21 shooting from the field and 5-of-9 from deep. He also chipped in three rebounds, two assists, a steal and a blocked shot. Despite all of his work with the basketball, Irving registered just a single turnover.

Isaiah Thomas, the Boston Celtics' 5'9" reserve point guard put up 22 points, five rebounds and 10 assists, joining Oscar Robertson and LeBron James as the only players in history to register such numbers in their playoff debuts. Boston led the Cavaliers by five points with Thomas in the game—the only Celtics contributor with a positive plus/minus rating.

Kevin Love struggled to get going in his playoff debut, connecting on just two of 11 shots in the first half. He lost the ball on multiple occasions, either by mishandling or by watching an opponent knock it away.

Image Credit: tipofthetower.com

For years, the Toronto Raptors baffled the Washington Wizards. They couldn’t figure them out in the District or in Canada, in overtime or in regulation. But they entered Saturday’s Game 1 against the nemesis confident that the past, seven losses in the last eight meetings, did not matter, that they could solve the puzzle. And on Saturday they did, utilizing a game plan unseen during the regular season to claim a 93-86 overtime victory.

Wizards' coach Randy Wittman used Paul Pierce at power forward for long stretches after utilizing the veteran there for just 4 percent of Washington’s regular season minutes. He played Marcin Gortat in the fourth quarter after Gortat was absent following the third period in the teams’ three regular season meetings. He elected Kevin Seraphin as his second man off the bench over Kris Humphries when Gortat encountered foul trouble, and he granted Otto Porter Jr. crunch-time minutes in his playoff debut one month after Porter was buried at the end of the bench.

“I said something before the game to them,” Wittman said. “You don’t know, first playoff game, this could be an ugly game, could be a pretty game, but if it’s ugly, then we have to be able to win it without our defense.”

Washington is 6-1 on the road in the postseason dating from last year under Wittman, the first coach in NBA history to post such a mark in his first seven road playoff games. The Wizards seized home-court advantage from their opponent for the third straight series and will return to Toronto on Tuesday night seeking to bring a commanding 2-0 advantage back to Washington.

“We’re going to try to get greedy,” Pierce said. “We didn’t come up here to try to get one game. We came up to take it one game at a time. We got Game 1, and now we’re trying to get Game 2.”

Christine O'Connor

@christineeeeO

Tim Tebow Officially Back in the NFL; Signs With Philadelphia Eagles

Football’s most interesting team this off-season, the Eagles, just got even more interesting – if that were possible. 

Philadelphia has finalized an agreement with the 27-year-old Tebow, the framework of which was put into place when he worked out for the team last month.

Image Credit: twitter.com/Eagles

Before signing Tebow, the Eagles first wanted to try to trade backup quarterback Matt Barkley. But when the team could not get enough in return, it decided to bring in Tebow anyway so that he could be present for the team’s entire off-season program.

This signing isn't totally unexpected. Philadelphia obviously brought in Tebow for a workout earlier this offseason. After leaving town without a deal, one report indicated the Eagles were going to sign Tebow if the team could trade Matt Barkley. As Schefter notes, the team couldn't trade Barkley, so they just signed Tebow anyway.

Image Credit: twitter.com/Eagles

Tebow, a former first round pick of the Denver Broncos, hasn't been in the NFL since the Patriots released him in August 2013. He used to be teammates with Sanchez when they both played on the New York Jets in 2012.

It is one thing to stockpile receivers or defensive backs. But teams can use only one quarterback at a time, and sometimes having even two candidates for starter can lead to a controversy that eats up a team. Now the Eagles have five quarterbacks, three of whom have started N.F.L. games.

Eagles coach Chip Kelly loved going for two points during his coaching days at Oregon. He knows Tebow can be a two-point specialist if nothing else.

The NFL, at its owners meetings May 18-20 in San Francisco, is expected to amend its extra-point rules for the 2015 season. The proposal that seemed to have the most traction as the owners, coaches and top executives adjourned from their league meetings last month in Phoenix: Move the one-point extra point back 13 yards to a 33-yard kick and nudge the two-point conversion in a half-yard from the 2-yard line to the 1 1/2.

Tebow rushed for four touchdowns of 2 yards or less in his two Bronco seasons (2010-2011) and was two-of-two in two-point rushing attempts during his impressive 2011 season.

The nominal starter at this point is Sam Bradford, acquired in March from the St. Louis Rams in a surprising trade for the Eagles’ starter last season, Nick Foles.

His status as starter there, and even his roster spot, may not be locked up. Though jerseys of the Eagles’ other new acquisitions are readily available, Bradford jerseys were not in stock at local stores, NJ.com reported last week. Is Bradford just a pawn in Chip Kelly's trading game? We will find out soon enough. 

Christine O'Connor

@christineeeeO